In recent years, general interest in 3D video images has been increasing. For example, amusement park attractions that incorporate 3D video images are popular. Furthermore, throughout the country, the number of movie theaters showing 3D movies is increasing. Along with this increased interest in 3D video images, the development of technology that enables playback of 3D video images in the home has also been progressing. There is demand for this technology to store 3D video content on a portable recording medium, such as an optical disc, while maintaining the 3D video content at high image quality. Furthermore, there is demand for the recording medium to be compatible with a two-dimensional (2D) playback device. That is, it is preferable for a 2D playback device to be able to play back 2D video images and a 3D playback device to be able to play back 3D video images from the same 3D video content recorded on the recording medium. Here, a “2D playback device” refers to a conventional playback device that can only play back monoscopic video images, i.e. 2D video images, whereas a “3D playback device” refers to a playback device that can play back 3D video images. Note that in the present description, a 3D playback device is assumed to be able to also play back conventional 2D video images.
FIG. 81 is a schematic diagram illustrating the technology for ensuring compatibility with 2D playback devices for an optical disc on which 3D video content is recorded (see, for example, Patent literature 1). An optical disc PDS stores two types of video streams. One is a 2D/left-view video stream, and the other is a right-view video stream. A “2D/left-view video stream” represents 2D video images to be shown to the left eye of a viewer during 3D playback, i.e. a “left view”. During 2D playback, this stream constitutes the 2D video image. A “right-view video stream” represents 2D video images to be shown to the right eye of the viewer during 3D playback, i.e. a “right view”. The left- and right-view video streams have the same frame rate but different presentation times shifted from each other by half a frame period. For example, when the frame rate of each video stream is 24 fps (frames per second), the frames of the 2D/left-view video stream and the right-view video stream are alternately displayed every 1/48 seconds.
As shown in FIG. 81, each the left-view and right-view video streams are divided into a plurality of extents EX1A-C and EX2A-C respectively on the optical disc PDS. Each extent contains at least one group of pictures (GOP), GOPs being read together by the optical disc drive. Hereinafter, the extents belonging to the 2D/left-view video stream are referred to as “2D/left-view extents”, and the extents belonging to the right-view video stream are referred to as “right-view extents”. The 2D/left-view extents EX1A-C and the right-view extents EX2A-C are alternately arranged on a track TRC of the optical disc PDS. Each two contiguous extents EX1A+EX2A, EX1B+EX2B, and EX1C+EX2C have the same length of playback time. Such an arrangement of extents is referred to as an “interleaved arrangement”. A group of extents recorded in an interleaved arrangement on a recording medium is used both in 3D video playback and 2D video image playback, as described below.
From among the extents recorded on the optical disc PDS, a 2D playback device PL2 causes an optical disc drive DD2 to read only the 2D/left-view extents EX1A-C sequentially from the top, skipping the reading of right-view extents EX2A-C. Furthermore, an image decoder VDC sequentially decodes the extents read by the optical disc drive DD2 into a video frame VFL. In this way, a display device DS2 only displays left views, and viewers can watch normal 2D video images.
A 3D playback device PL3 causes an optical disc drive DD3 to alternately read 2D/left-view extents and right-view extents from the optical disc PDS. When expressed as codes, the extents are read in the order EX1A, EX2A, EX1B, EX2B, EX1C, and EX2C. Furthermore, from among the read extents, those belonging to the 2D/left-view video stream are supplied to a left-video decoder VDL, whereas those belonging to the right-view video stream are supplied to a right-video decoder VDR. The video decoders VDL and VDR alternately decode the video streams into video frames VFL and VFR, respectively. Thus, left views and right views are alternately displayed on a display device DS3. In synchronization with the switching of the views by the display device DS3, shutter glasses SHG cause the left and right lenses to become nontransparent alternately. Consequently, left views are perceived by the left eye of a viewer wearing the shutter glasses SHG, whereas right views are perceived by the right eye of the viewer. In this way, a pair of a left view and a right view, a pair of 2D video images that are alternately displayed on the display device DS3, appear to the viewer as a single 3D video image.
When 3D video content is stored on any recording medium, not only on an optical disc, the above-described interleaved arrangement of extents is used. The recording medium can thus be used both for playback of 2D video images and 3D video images.